1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a liquid and/or dry ingredient dispensing capsule that is mounted directly to or within the body of a bottle, pack, pouch, carton, tube, can, sealable sandwich bag, or any other liquid or gel container or, alternatively, inserted into the neck or into the cap of the container. The capsule stores liquid and/or dry substances which can be rapidly dispensed into the container by manual activation when desired and the mixed contents can be thereafter readily consumed by the user.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many foods, drugs, cosmetics, mouth washes, adhesives, polishes, cleansers, dyes and other substances are compounds or mixtures that are frequently supplied in liquid, powder or crystal form and do not retain their stability, strength and effectiveness for long after the ingredients have been mixed in solution or suspension with a different liquid. This incompatibility after mixing therefore mandates that the product be utilized relatively soon after mixture to obtain full strength benefits or to prevent loss of effective strength, deterioration, discoloration, interactions and reduce effectiveness. It is also important that admixtures of various ingredients be done under conditions wherein a measured amount of one ingredient is added to a measured amount of the other liquid or chemical to insure that proper results are obtained. The process of loss of effectiveness is often termed “shelf life.” Once two different chemicals are combined, the process of deterioration often begins.
Another concern involves merchandising of certain products, where it is frequently desirable to supply two companion products to the consumer in a single package. Thus, many products are, by their very nature, required to be used by the consumer shortly after their manufacture and mixture as they lose certain desirable characteristics with a short period of time, yet the product can be stored for extended periods of time if one ingredient is maintained separate from the other. In such case, the two ingredients may be mixed together to form the desired product shortly before use. In marketing such goods, it obviously is desirable that both ingredients be sold as part of the same package or added by the consumer. From an aesthetic as well as a handling standpoint, it is desirable that but a single package be utilized for maintaining such compounds separated.
The use of conventional liquid containers such as plastic bottles for carrying water, juices, power drinks and other desirable liquids for human consumption is quite well known. There are, however, several non-active and active substances such as activated oxygen, vitamins, minerals, herbs, nutrients and flavors that would be desirable to be added to liquids such as water, juices or other beverages to give the consumer added benefits, particularly those useful for the health of the consumer. Many of the substances, however, that provide additional benefits when mixed into another liquid have short shelf lives, discolor, interact or degrade quickly when combined with liquids or other substances. Therefore, many beverages are currently sold without the added beneficial ingredients.
Other product containers are known to include cleaning, health, hair care, hair coloring, cosmetic, drugs, pharmaceutical and dental products. These products also often contain active ingredients having a short shelf life. It would be desirable to separate certain active ingredients prior to use in these containers.
Prior art intra-container mixing prior to use was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,222 to Steigerwald comprising an open threaded container containing a liquid, a powder containing releasable receptacle sealed with foil which is cut by a cutting mandrel during screwing of the receptacle onto the container. Unlike the present invention, the Steigerwald arrangement situates a powder containing receptacle on top of rather than within the container and utilizes a cutting means rather than a two-part sealed plunger means to confine then discharge the receptacle contents.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,863,126 to Guild discloses a baby bottle fluid mixing system comprising a pre-stored powdered substance confined within a first upper container screw disposed atop a second lower container separated by an internal stemmed disk sealed in a snap fit arrangement at the aperture between the bottles, which descends into the lower bottle after removal from the aperture for use. The present invention discloses a capsule body insertable in but not screwed onto a liquid containing bottle and further comprises two sealable plugs or closures rather than one snap fit plug and a disposable, non-reusable interior mounted capsule versus top threaded reusable upper container for pre-stored dry or liquid.
Another such device for separate storage and subsequent mixing of two products was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,142 to DiPalma which comprised a first ingredient container, a second ingredient dispenser compartment plunger arrangement with a weakened wall region inserted within and separated from the container, a removable container closure connected to the plunger and a plunger projection for engagement which ruptures the weakened wall region to release the second ingredient into the first ingredient container. Unlike the present invention, DiPalma's singular sealing means is the reservoir for the second ingredient and fails to create upon activation an orifice for immediate dispensing of the mixed products.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,692,644 to Gueret discloses a container separately storing, then mixing and dispensing two products in which a first liquid containing bottle is separated by a movable wall from a second reservoir containing powder. Force applied to a cylindrical piston in the direction toward the dispensing orifice of the container cuts the seal between the two reservoirs, thereby facilitating the combination and mixing of the two products within the first reservoir of the container. The Gueret apparatus differs from all embodiments of the present invention in that the piston is an integral portion of the slideable base which is snapably attached to the bottle and when compressed with external manual pressure breaks the seals, pushing the contents up into the bottom portion of the liquid-containing bottle thereby accomplishing the mixing of the two products and simultaneously reducing the exterior dimensions of the bottle. The present invention dispenses the dry product without a piston or slideable base integrated within the bottle nor does the overall size of the bottle change during use.
Another separate storage and dispensing device was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,927 to Morane which comprised a bottle for liquid having at its neck a leak proof envelope separately storing and enclosing additional product, with a slidable push button perforator in the cap on the bottle neck which opens the envelope to discharge the envelope contents into the liquid in the bottle, thereafter being dispensed through a duct in the cap rather than passing through the perforated center cap area as is the case with the present invention. Morane is also not a two plug system as is the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,156,369 issued to Bowes, et al. on Nov. 10, 1964 shows a bicameral container that includes a bottle cap dispenser. No provision is made to retain the dispenser in the container to allow consumption of the mixed ingredients.
Child safety is a concern with respect to dispensing containers to ensure that the dispensing process does not entail creating small frangible items or pieces of foil, paper, plastic, foam or other materials that could harm a child or an adult.
The cost of manufacturing must always be considered in determining whether or not a containing dispenser is practical in everyday use.
The present invention provides a liquid and/or dry ingredients containing capsule that is mounted in the body wall, formed as part of the body wall or inserted into any type liquid container including packs, bags, tubes, spray bottles, cartons, pumps and syringes, cans and plastic or glass bottles. The capsule includes a manual dispenser. The capsule ingredients are completely sealed within the capsule body, and remain separated from the liquid in the container until the exact moment of usage, which is determined by the consumer by manually dispensing the capsule ingredients (powder or liquid). The capsule can also be conveniently mounted or pre-manufactured separately at the factory and added to a container as described herein. The capsule can be mounted to or within any type of package or carton through the package wall at any location. Thus, active ingredients, e.g. activated oxygen, vitamins, herbs, nutrients, drugs, bonding agents or other substances having a short activity life (shelf life) when added to a particular liquid can now be safely and sealably stored in a capsule until time for use and can be subsequently added to the desired liquid, thereby ensuring that the shelf life and time of activity of the materials are not jeopardized even though they are housed within the liquid container. Once activated, the contents of the bottle can be used by the user without removing the capsule. The capsule can be sealably attached to a container wall and protrude on the outside of the container.
The present invention also offers the advantage that it does not require significant modification of existing liquid containers, packages, cartons, bottle caps, tubes or existing bottles. In fact, it can be inserted into existing bottles without interfering with the sealability of the conventional bottle and bottle cap through an aperture in the container wall. The invention could be used in paint cans with concentrate paint colors in the capsule that could be added to white paint. The capsule body can be molded as part of the container wall.
The capsule may be added at the factory to the neck of a liquid bearing container and pre-mounted in the container at the factory after the container itself is partially filled with a liquid or used with an existing container by the consumer. A conventional bottle cap is used to seal the bottle contents, including the capsule. The capsule with its ingredients sealed therein can be sold separately or prepackaged in any type of container.
None of the above prior art taken either alone or in combination, describes, suggests or renders obvious the instant invention as claimed.